Yankees' Minor Shakeup

After Dan Geise injured his shoulder (although 30 Rock reports he slipped into a coma), the Yankees needed to make a roster move to replace him in the rotation. His replacement has not been named yet, it could it be Phil Hughes. But that's not the point of this post. The point is that they made two other roster moves:

First of all, they sent Melky Cabrera to the minors and recalled Brett Gardner. This move, while minor, is a smart decision, as Melky is simply not hitting. Gardner and his .414 OBP at AAA, coupled with his speed, could provide a spark to the Yankees' offense, and at worst, he can't be much worse than Melky was. It doesn't really matter if Melky, Gardner, or Justin Christian is in center, as they're all nothing more than placeholders for Austin Jackson in a couple of years. This is a low-risk move that could provide strong dividends if Gardner is able to produce this time around. Honestly, I don't know why they didn't do this sooner.

Second, they waived Richie Sexson and called up Cody Ransom. I don't really think this move is all that great. Sexson wasn't doing much, but it's not like he had such a huge window to display his abilities. He's still better defensively than Jason Giambi, and he's not costing us anything. If he was needed to be moved to make room for someone better, I could understand, but this is Cody Ransom we're talking about. The guy was hitting .255 in the minors, and is a career .226 hitter in the majors. And at 32, it's not like he's a prospect. He may be able to play more positions than Sexson, but the Yanks already have Wilson Betemit as their primary utility man. But hey, it's still a minor move, and it's not like Sexson is our savior or anything. I just think this move is relatively pointless, and that with his minuscule salary, Sexson was worth a longer look, especially if his replacement is no better than Cody Ransom.

Perhaps the shakeup itself will put a little fire in the players' eyes, but I doubt that'll last. Again, these aren't exactly major moves. But we'll see how it pans out.